Author: Andrew StaceyFormat: MarkdownItexI've enabled "Smart Quotes" for the Markdown+Itex formatter. You can customise it in your account settings (under 'iTeX settings'). It makes a few "nice" typographical changes that hopefully will have no major impact other than make things look nicer. The default setting does the following:
* Change \"word\" to "word"
* Change \`word\' to `word'
* Change \`\`word\'\' to ``word''
* Change \-\- to -- (en-dash)
* Change \-\-\- to --- (em-dash)
* Change \.\.\. to ...
It ought *not* to look inside code blocks, so `"word"` should still look right, and mathematics, so $`x -- y'$ should still look right.

I’ve enabled “Smart Quotes” for the Markdown+Itex formatter. You can customise it in your account settings (under ’iTeX settings’). It makes a few “nice” typographical changes that hopefully will have no major impact other than make things look nicer. The default setting does the following:

Change "word" to “word”

Change `word' to ‘word’

Change ``word'' to “word”

Change -- to – (en-dash)

Change --- to — (em-dash)

Change ... to …

It ought not to look inside code blocks, so "word" should still look right, and mathematics, so `x−−y′`x -- y' should still look right.

Author: Andrew StaceyFormat: MarkdownItexOh, no - it isn't! It's for the *reader* to decide how it should be implemented. I'm not sure which makes more sense. Perhaps it is that the reader should be able to turn it on or off since one of the issues with it is that if you are cutting-and-pasting then these symbols can get mangled.

Oh, no - it isn’t! It’s for the reader to decide how it should be implemented. I’m not sure which makes more sense. Perhaps it is that the reader should be able to turn it on or off since one of the issues with it is that if you are cutting-and-pasting then these symbols can get mangled.

Author: Mike ShulmanFormat: MarkdownItexThanks!!
Curiously, when I went to "change iTeX mode", at first it didn't display any checkboxes selected at all, despite its claim that the default setting was something-or-other (and the fact that it was displaying the smart quotes and dashes for me here before I went to look at the settings page). But then after I selected some checkboxes and saved them, they show up as selected when I reload the page.
What about changing \'this\' to render as `this' rather than 'this'? I think a lot of us write single-quoted words without using backquotes --- you even did it yourself in #1 for 'iTeX settings'. (In response to Jim, I believe the characters \' and \" on a keyboard are intended to be neutral, rather than 'smart' in either direction, even though some processors --- \*cough\* TeX \*cough\* --- render them as ' and ''.)

Thanks!!

Curiously, when I went to “change iTeX mode”, at first it didn’t display any checkboxes selected at all, despite its claim that the default setting was something-or-other (and the fact that it was displaying the smart quotes and dashes for me here before I went to look at the settings page). But then after I selected some checkboxes and saved them, they show up as selected when I reload the page.

What about changing 'this' to render as ‘this’ rather than ’this’? I think a lot of us write single-quoted words without using backquotes — you even did it yourself in #1 for ’iTeX settings’. (In response to Jim, I believe the characters ' and " on a keyboard are intended to be neutral, rather than ’smart’ in either direction, even though some processors — *cough* TeX *cough* — render them as ’ and ”.)

Author: Mike ShulmanFormat: MarkdownItexRe: 5 and 6, it looks to me as though it's customizable, in a sense, by *both* the author and the reader, in the sense that for smart thingummies to display, it has to be the case that both (1) the author selected "Markdown+Itex" and (2) the reader has "render smart quotes" turned on. The author can also "turn it off" even using Markdown+Itex by writing backslashes, \\\' to make \', \\\" to make \", \\\-- to make \--, and \\\-\\\-- to make \-\--.

Re: 5 and 6, it looks to me as though it’s customizable, in a sense, by both the author and the reader, in the sense that for smart thingummies to display, it has to be the case that both (1) the author selected “Markdown+Itex” and (2) the reader has “render smart quotes” turned on. The author can also “turn it off” even using Markdown+Itex by writing backslashes, \' to make ', \" to make ", \-- to make --, and \-\-- to make ---.

Author: Andrew StaceyFormat: MarkdownItex7a is because there's a system-wide default that's in force if you haven't selected *anything*. I guess it's confusing for that to not match the checkboxes. I'll fix that.
7b makes sense, but will involve digging into the code.
With regard to customisation, what makes most sense? I could put it on all input filters, but really I only keep the non-Markdown+itex ones for legacy reasons. There's some sense in the Text one, but not much in the others.

7a is because there’s a system-wide default that’s in force if you haven’t selected anything. I guess it’s confusing for that to not match the checkboxes. I’ll fix that.

7b makes sense, but will involve digging into the code.

With regard to customisation, what makes most sense? I could put it on all input filters, but really I only keep the non-Markdown+itex ones for legacy reasons. There’s some sense in the Text one, but not much in the others.

Author: TobyBartelsFormat: MarkdownItex>if you are cutting-and-pasting then these symbols can get mangled
If you are cutting and pasting into another comment on the Forum (or into the Lab), then you should always cut and paste the *Source*.

if you are cutting-and-pasting then these symbols can get mangled

If you are cutting and pasting into another comment on the Forum (or into the Lab), then you should always cut and paste the Source.

Author: TobyBartelsFormat: MarkdownItexI\'m afraid to do anything to my iTeX options, because I\'m afraid that it will mess up my math rendering. I have the default option now, but I don\'t know what that is; I only know that it\'s *not* what the options page says!

I'm afraid to do anything to my iTeX options, because I'm afraid that it will mess up my math rendering. I have the default option now, but I don't know what that is; I only know that it's not what the options page says!

Author: Mike ShulmanFormat: MarkdownItex> really I only keep the non-Markdown+itex ones for legacy reasons
Could you turn off the ability for people to choose how to format their posts, even if you keep the others around internally to display old posts with?

really I only keep the non-Markdown+itex ones for legacy reasons

Could you turn off the ability for people to choose how to format their posts, even if you keep the others around internally to display old posts with?